I should have known better than to purchase a book with this narrator. He uses the same intonation for almost every sentence, which makes the dialogue sound very unnatural. The narration spoiled the audio experience for me.

The prior reviewers were very wrong. I've listened to every Michael Connelly book. Some really missed the mark. I've only had one Harry Bosch story that wasn't quite right, that was the "BrassVerdict". He was not the main character in that story, Mickey Haller was the main character.
This book had it all. Len Cariou was terrific as the reader, the plot had some significant surprises and the deaths of one of the characters was shocking.
I was compelled to bring my ipod from my car to my kitchen to other places in my house so that I could continue to listen to the end of the story.

I am a Michael Connelly fan but this book did not cut it for me. The unbelievability factor is just too high in both dialog and storyline. Maybe the Len Cariou narration contributed to this problem as the father daughter conversations did not ring true. I prefer Connelly read by Dick Hill or Adam Grupper. I did, however, enjoy the Hong Kong scenes as I've been there a few times and could visualize the settings. I got through it pretty easily and enjoyed some moments but Connelly has written many better books.

The title of the book is great! "Nine dragons" is the English meaning of "Kowloon" in Hong Kong where most of the action takes place, but another meaning comes out in the story, making it more interesting! The story provides an education into Chinese tongs and the history of Hong Kong as well as developing the characters of Bosch and Haller and their families.

Despite the fact that every book in the series ends cynically and with dark undercurrents for the main characters, they are fascinating and exciting. This one is no different, and will satisfy Bosch fans as well as newcomers!

Until 9 Dragons, I have enjoyed all of Michael Connelly's novels. They are usually, taut, believe-able and gripping, with a decent amount of character development, especially compared to what one usually finds in this genre.

9 Dragons is anything but.

If you are out to turn someone on to this author, don't start with this book!! Dunno what happened, but this far-fetched, dog of a story, while engaging enough, is not even close to the level of Connelly's other outings. It's as he's created an "alternative reality" Bosch. Maybe that's it. In another novel or three, we'll find out that in the real universe, Rachel is still alive and 9 Dragons was some aberrated fantasy/dream sequence or something. Maybe Connelly has a penchant for sci-fi yet to be revealed..?

The best part of this book was in the early chapters as Bosch plies the streets of LA. His relationships, good and bad, with colleagues and others, are absorbing and instructive. Borderline implausible plot twists (probably unnecessary) and some unresolved issues were a bit disappointing, but all in all, this was highly absorbing if you don't do too much analysis or mourn the loss of a somewhat grittier, though no tougher, Harry.